U.S. Navy bridge coats

[Doctor Damage]

I just picked this one up. Dated 1943 and has the owners name. Do you know what one black stripe on the sleeves indicates?

Someone here will know but it indicates rank. Not specific rank, but junior officer, senior officer, etc. It appears to be one thick stripe with one thin one above... is that right? It also appears the sleeves might have been shorted by an inch.

By the way, always button all the buttons!

 

[danielcrmstr]

Someone here will know but it indicates rank. Not specific rank, but junior officer, senior officer, etc. It appears to be one thick stripe with one thin one above... is that right? It also appears the sleeves might have been shorted by an inch.

By the way, always button all the buttons!

Cant...missing one! lol

 

[Treetopflyer]

I just picked this one up. Dated 1943 and has the owners name. Do you know what one black stripe on the sleeves indicates?

It is a Lieutenant Junior Grade (O-2) in the USN. It is equivalent to a First Lieutenant in the USA, USAF and USMC. It is actually one solid stripe and one half stripe. One solid stripe indicates the rank of Ensign.

 

[danielcrmstr]

Excellent...thanks! That must have been from when he first started. I did some research on him and he made it up to lt cmdr by the time he got out. I called him today to verify that it wasn't stolen...nice guy...96 years old now lol

 

[Doctor Damage]

 

[smm]

I bought and modified a black wool bridge coat. Thought others might be interested, or at least find the details on this particular coat useful.

I bought the bridge coat from American-ArmyNavy.com. It's made by Fidelity. I'm a big guy who wears a 46R suit, and got that same size for the coat. It fits well, but is NOT a bit too big like other wool overcoats which you're meant to wear over a suit. I could not wear this coat over a suit. Luckily, I don't wear suits often and I can wear it just fine over my casual clothes. It's very heavy and very warm. The wool on the outside feels like it could be a bit scratchy. 78% wool, 19% nylon, 3% acrylic. The lining is 100% acetate. It comes with an inside label that looks legit military, though I've read that Fidelity coats aren't actually.


(Suspicious is that it says "ISSUE: ONE EACH" but I've read that bridge coats are optional garments that officers must purchase themselves. Maybe Fidelity just uses the same label on all their coats?)

It's a handsome coat, with eight 1" gold buttons on the front, plus one hidden under the lapel for buttoning up the collar. It has two smaller gold buttons on the belt on the back, and one on the strap of each shoulder. It is definitely black and not navy blue. The shoulder straps are removable, but even if you remove them the coat has the buttons and a little loops on the shoulders. It has a vent in the back, with a small inner black button.


PROS: It's very warm and comfortable. It looks good IMO.
CONS: No inner jacket pocket. It's not actually that long. (I think the USN specs say it must go "1/3 of the way below the knee" but this coat doesn't even go below the knee at all.)

Pics of the modified coat in the next post.

 

[smm]

I bought some wooden ebony buttons to replace the gold ones, and had the buttons and loops on the shoulders removed. I thought about having the belt removed, since I'm not sure I really like the way it pinches in the coat at the waist, but decided to leave it. Unfortunately, the tailor I took it to couldn't add any inner pockets.

I think it came out nice:



...plus a little bit of flair for the collar button, only visible when the collar is buttoned up:



All in all I'm happy. I think it was a good price for a good coat which only took slight modifications to look "civilian".

 

[Peacoat]

I like it. Am surprised, though, that it is so short. Does it have an insulated lining? Most of them have a removable lining that can be zipped in place.

BTW, welcome to the Lounge.

 

[Doctor Damage]

The Fidelity coats are not military coats, but they're very good quality and very heavy. I'm glad it's worked out for you, smm!

(also, full marks for posting in this thread instead of starting a new one, ha ha)

 

[smm]

I like it. Am surprised, though, that it is so short. Does it have an insulated lining? Most of them have a removable lining that can be zipped in place.

BTW, welcome to the Lounge.

Thanks. Nope, unfortunately the lining does not zip out. Chalk that up to my wish list for this coat! Zip-out lining, inner pockets, and just a bit longer.

 

[Doctor Damage]

I think you will find that the military ones are more like a civilian overcoat, i.e. cut to fit over a suit with shoulder pads. So if you don't like that, then perhaps re-think.

 

[Doctor Damage]

Some info from one of our members:

I checked the USN regs and Pers-329-MEB A2-3, issued 2/14/1947, included a reference tp officer uniform changes: "Black sleeve stripes on overcoats are no longer required."

 

[Doctor Damage]

[url=https://postimg.org/image/eubvhf9hh/]

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[Michael A]

I picked up this coat today while I was out bicycling around town.
DSCN5744 crop by Michael A2012, on Flickr
DSCN5746 crop by Michael A2012, on Flickr
DSCN5745 crop by Michael A2012, on Flickr

From a DSA contract dated 1968. Came with a handkerchief and pair of gloves in the pocket with the gloves having the same owner's initial stamp as the coat itself.

Michael

 

[Doctor Damage]

Oh man, you find the best stuff, Micheal !!! Perfect fit, too. Keep the gloves with the coat in case you decide to sell it someday. Too bad you can't i.d. who the original owner was.

 

[Michael A]

Oh man, you find the best stuff, Micheal !!! Perfect fit, too. Keep the gloves with the coat in case you decide to sell it someday. Too bad you can't i.d. who the original owner was.

Thanks DD. I know the owners last name and ID number, I suppose it is, because they are stamped into the coat as well. Someday when I'm bored I'll try to look him up. The coat is a 40L and I would not want it any tighter in the chest than it is with the tweed jacket I'm wearing under it. My limited experience with naval clothing is that they cut their stuff with very little design ease, but fair wearing ease.

Michael

 

[C5Shark]

When shopping eBay for a bridge coat, how much extra room should there be in the chest measurement? I measure about 42" through the chest, should I be looking for something with a 22" pit to pit or is that too trim to wear over a suit jacket?

 

[Peacoat]

When shopping eBay for a bridge coat, how much extra room should there be in the chest measurement? I measure about 42" through the chest, should I be looking for something with a 22" pit to pit or is that too trim to wear over a suit jacket?

A p2p of about 22" would give a coat size of 42. They are made to be worn over a suit coat and sized accordingly, so I think a 22" p2p is what you need.

BTW, welcome to the Lounge. PC

 

[C5Shark]

A p2p of about 22" would give a coat size of 42. They are made to be worn over a suit coat and sized accordingly, so I think a 22" p2p is what you need.

BTW, welcome to the Lounge. PC

Thanks!

 

[Doctor Damage]

A p2p of about 22" would give a coat size of 42. They are made to be worn over a suit coat and sized accordingly, so I think a 22" p2p is what you need.

Military fit might be okay at 22" over a tunic with little to no padding, but over a civilian suit 23" is more or less the standard for a 42 chest overcoat. And I don't mean tent-like 1980s fit either, I'm talking modern overcoats. I have a Brooks Brothers polo coat from a few years back and a new covert coat from the UK (which fits much like a bridge coat, quite trim) and both are 23" in the chest.